ProRodeo Sports News - May 12, 2023

GUYMON, OKLA.

GUYMON PIONEER DAYS RODEO Thompson takes Guymon with 92.5-point ride Memorable BY JOLEE JORDAN, Special to ProRodeo Sports News D ean Thompson was sick. Literally battling a cold for days, the Utah bareback riding rookie needed a jolt to turn things around and get him back to good health. Turns out, he just needed some gun fire. Number 16 Gun Fire of Frontier Rodeo that is, the 2022 PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year. “I got the text on Tuesday with the draw that I had Gun Fire,” Thompson, 21, said. “That whole week was like, I’ve got to get better, get healthy.”

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TOP MONEY EARNER Ty Harris ($7,801, tie down roping) BAREBACK RIDING

Thompson rebounded in time for the matchup on May 6 at the Guymon (Okla.) Pioneer Days Rodeo. He marked 92.5 points, a half point better than the arena record set a year ago on the same horse, to claim the victory at the PRCA Playoff Series stop. “That is THE highlight,” Thompson laughed, talking about the high points of his Resistol Rookie season this year. “I had my first 90 of my career this winter and there’s no comparing. This is a different horse.” Thompson actually passed on his first possible match-up with “The Big Buckskin” back during the draft for the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo in February. “I had a chance at her in San Antonio and I took Yippee Kibitz,” Thompson explained. “When I walked back, Caleb Bennett told me, ‘You’re such an idiot!’ So, Leighton Berry chose her at fifth, was 93 points and won the rodeo.” Thompson admits that the horse wasn’t really on his radar prior to that night but that he swore then he would never make that mistake again. Gun Fire has quickly earned a reputation as a favorite for allowing 90-plus point rides and giving riders a chance for big money like the $3,576 Thompson won in Guymon. “What I think makes that horse so special, she doesn’t make all these crazy moves, she’s real honest but she’s got so much weight pulling on your riggin’, if you stub your toe, you’ve got no chance to recover.” With that thought in mind, Thompson said his whole week was rolled up in thinking about the impending battle. “When you draw one like that, that’s when you see if you really trust your ability,” he said. “You think, ‘am I good enough to ride a horse like this?’ So, I worked all week on that, telling myself I could ride her.” Finally feeling well again just in time to reach the Oklahoma Panhandle, Thompson noted the sheer size of the mare as he climbed aboard. “She a big, gentle giant, just massive,” he said. Taking advice from Frontier Rodeo’s Rodeo Manager Heath Stewart, Thompson waited for Gun Fire to look to the arena before calling for her. Then, the gate delayed a bit on the start, slowing things down in Thompson’s mind. “I felt like I waited 20 seconds in there,” he laughed. “But I could see everything clear, I watched myself mark her out. On jump one and two I was feeling it out. By jump three . . . it felt amazing, and I thought, ‘I’ve got her.’” The ride will likely remain forever fixed in Thompson’s mind. “It’s what you dream of as a bareback rider.” It’s all part of the passion and energy of a 21-year-old cowboy who thrives on the competition and uniqueness of the sport of rodeo. “Rodeo is something else when you love it,” he said. “I talk to so many guys who want to go to less rodeos and I understand it when you have a family or whatever. Rodeo shouldn’t be a priority for those guys.” “But for guys like me, they say you need to take advantage of your youth,” he continued. “It’s easy for me to want to go to a rodeo a day. “I figure I better get while the getting is good.” It’s been more than good so far for Thompson, who finds himself inside the Top 15 of the PRCA | RAM World Standings and fifth in a hugely competitive Resistol Rookie race for bareback riders.

Harris

1. Dean Thompson ................. 92.5 pts. 2. Donny Proffit ................................ 88 3. Two at ........................................... 87 STEER WRESTLING 1. Mason Couch ............. 13.1 sec. on 3 2. J.D. Struxness ........................... 13.3 3. Trisyn Kalawaia .......................... 14.5 TEAM ROPING 1. D. Begay/C. Todd ........ 21.9 sec. on 3 T. Waters/D. Rich ........................... 23.0 B. Buckaloo/JR Gonzalez ............... 23.3 SADDLE BRONC RIDING 1. Tanner Butner ........................ 90 pts. 2. Wyatt Casper ............................. 88.5 3. Two at ........................................ 86.5 TIE-DOWN ROPING 1. Ty Harris ..................... 26.0 sec. on 3 2. Shane Hanchey .......................... 27.1 3. Kincade Henry ........................... 27.4 STEER ROPING 1. Scott Snedecor ........... 56.9 sec. on 4 2. Brodie Poppino .......................... 65.4 3. Cole Patterson ........................... 66.8 BULL RIDING 1. Junior Souza .......................... 88 pts. 2. Colton Kelly ............................... 86.5 3. Dustin Bouquet ............................. 86

Complete results/Page 66

Dale Hirschman photo Bareback rider Dean Thompson won the Guymon Pioneer Days Rodeo with a 92.5-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Gun Fire. Gun Fire was the 2022 PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year.

ProRodeo Sports News 5/12/2023

ProRodeo Sports News 5/12/2023

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